Annealing and tempering apparatus.



E. H. ANGLE & A. H. KETOHAM. ANNEALING AND TEMP ERING APPARATUSAPPLICATION FILED MAY 6, 1914.

- Patented Oct. 6, 1914.

L T B E H s s T B E H s 2 E. H. ANGLE & 'A. H. KETGHAM. ANNBALINGANDTEMPERING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 6, 1914.

' 1,112,750. Patented 0013.6,1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Mme/Mow UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD H. ANGLE, OF NEW LONDON, CONNECTICUT, AND ALBERT H. KETCHAM, OFDENVER, COLOR-ADO.

ANNEALING AND TEMPERING APPARATUS.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, EDWARD H. ANGLE, residing at New London, New Londonand State of Connecticut, and ALBERT H. KE'rcrIAM, residing at Denver,in the county of Denver and State of Colorado, have jointly inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Annealing and TemperingApparatus, whereof the following is a specification, reference beinghad-to the accompanying drawings.

Our invention relates to the art of annealing and tempering, and isdirected particularly to that class of devices in .which the annealingoperation is effected by passing an electric current through the articleto be treated, and is especially applicable to mechanism for treatingdental regulating arches. V The principalob ects of our invention are,

to provide means for mo'vably holding a dental regulating arch incircuit with suitably disposed .electrical contact terminals; and toprovide a bath so disposed with respect to said holding means that saiddental contemporaneously regulating arch is plunged into said bath whensaid holding means is moved to break said circuit.

Other objects of our invention are, to provide means for holding adental regulating arch in such relation to the bath that when shifted toimmerse the arch, the plane of said arch will be caused to assume aposition substantially coincident with the plane of the surface of saidbath; to provide a closed casing for said holding means; to provide saidcasing with an eyesight aperture through which the operator may peer;and to provide means exterior to said casing for operating said holdingmeans.

Specifically stated, our invention comprehends a casing havingstationary electrical contact terminals; a rotarysha ft carrying spacedholders respectively provided with spring clips andhaving electricalcontact members engageable with said contact terminals; and 'a bath intowhich said clips may be dipped by the oscillation of said shaftuponitsaxis to break the electrical contact.

Our invention further includes all ofthe various novel features ofconstruction and arrangement hereinafter more definitely specified. Inthe accompanying drawings, Figure 1,

in the county of Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed Maye. 1914.

Patented Oct. 6, 1914. Serial in. 836,617.

isan exterior perspective view of our annealing and tempering apparatus.Fig. 2, 1s a plan view of said apparatus, showing the cover removed andthe operative mechanism in position to close the circuit through thearticle being treated. Fig. 3, is a central transverse verticalsectional view of said apparatus, showing the cover in place and theoperative mechanism in the position corresponding to the position shownin Fig. 2. Fig. 4, is a view similar to Fig. 3, but showing'theoperative mechanism disconnected from the electrical terminals and inposition to immerse the article being treated, the cover being removedand indicated in dot andldash lines.

In said figures, the casing is rectangular in form and comprises thebody 5, which carries the operative mechanism, and the lid or cover 6,which is provided with an eyesight aperture 7, centrally disposed in thetop wall thereof, although it may be other wise disposed to suit theconvenience of the operator. The rear wall 9, of the casing body 5,carries the adjustable terminal sockets 10, and 11, respectivelyprovided witlrbifureated spring contacts 12 and 13, and secured thereinby the thumb-nuts 14, which are in threaded engagement therewith, andarranged to be jammed against the inner and outer surfaces respectivelyof said wall 9, to hold the terminals in any desired adjusted position.

In the rear lower angle of the casing body 5, is suitably mounted theshaft or cylinder 15, formed of insulating material and journaled foroscillation upon suitable trunnions 16, and 17, the latter being securedthereto by the pin 18, and having the thumbwheel 20, disposed exteriorto the casing body 5, by which said shaft or cylinder may be actuated.

The insulated cylinder 15, carries a pair of radially extendingstandards 22, and 23, arranged to be moved in planes with the axis ofthe respective sockets 10, and 11, and said standards are provided withlaterally extending contact members 24, and 25, also extended in saidplanes and arranged to be i received between the bifurcated leaves ofthe spring fingers 12, and 13, as'shown in Figs. 2, and 3, to form theelectrical connection with the terminal sockets l0, and 11,respectively. a

The standards 22, and 23, carry holders \.llill1 comprise cylindricalbars 27, and 28, having spring clips 29, and 30, and which areadjustablyfitted in suitable transverse apertures near the upper end ofthe stand- 5 ards 22, and 23, respectively, and held in adjustedposition by suitable thumb-screws 32, and '33. The spring clips 29, and30,

are preferably formed of half round wire depending from the bars 27, and28, each having its free end portions 36, slightly twisted, directedobliquely outward, and bent back upon itself by forming the bight 38. i

Disposed closely adjacent to thecylinder 15, is a bath reservoir or tray40, of suitable depth to contain a requisite supply of fluid 41,comprising a tempering bath for the immersion of the dental regulatingarch 35, which is carried by the spring clips 29, and

30, and which is heated by its own resistanceto the electric current,which may be passed therethrough when the electrical contacts are made.Electric current may be supplied to the apparatus by a conductor whoseleads 42, and 43, are respectively provided thumb-wheel 20, from theposition shown in Figs. 2, and 3, to break the electrical circuit bywithdrawing the contact members 24,

and 25, from the spring fingers 12, and 13,

as shown in Fig. 4, said holders will be dipped into the tempering bathand the article carried thereby will be immersed thereincontemporaneously with the breaking of said circuit. It will be furthernoted that the free end portions of the clips 29, and 30, are disposedat such an angle and are so relatively twisted that the dentalregulatingarch 35, to be treated, is held when in circuit with vtheconductor, in such inclined angular position that when the cylinder 15,is oscillated toward the left, or anti-clockwise, said arch will beswung in an arc of a circle, its plane gradually assuming theplane ofthe surface of the bath, un-

til said article reaches the position to be immersed, when its planewill be substantially coincident with the plane of the surface of thebath and the entire length of the arch instantly plunged into said bath,whereby a uniform tempering throu hout the full extent of the arch willbe effected.

-It has been found convenient to so form the casing that the partingline between the lid or cover 6, and the body 5, will extend along thebottom wall of the body 5, and obliquely upward toward the back alongthe side walls thereof to a point adjacent to the top wall of the lid orcover 6, as best shown in Fig. 1, so thatwhen said lid or cover 6,

is removed, free access may be had to all of the operative parts carriedby the casing body 5. The casing may preferably be covered with leatheror other suitable material upon its exterior surface, but is preferablylined with a waterproof material, so that any splashing or spilling ofthe bath fiuid will have no deleterious efi'ect upon the device, whichmay be readily wiped out after using. 1

As shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4, the casing body 5, is provided with aninner upwardly extending flange 46, which maintains the lid or cover 6,in proper position with respect to said casing body and enables the lidto be readily registered therewith.

e have referred to the special applicability of our mechanism for thetreatment of dental regulating arches. Such small metal arches as usedin modern orthodontia, require the utmost nicety of treatment in orderto obtain exactly the proper degree of strength and elasticity. Toobtain this it is not only necessary that the heating of the arch shouldbe accomplished uniformly, and

be interrupted at precisely the proper moment, but it is furthernecessary that the plunging of the arch into the cooling fluid shall beaccomplished instantaneously, and that all parts of the arch shouldenter the bath at the same moment, so as to secure uniformity of result.Our invention accomplishes this desired result with great accuracy. Butwhile our device is thus particularly designed and adapted to annealingand tempering dental regulating arches, it is to be understood that itmay be as readily employed for similarly treating other devices and bemodified accordingly, and therefore it is not desired to limit ourinvention to the precise details of construction and arrangement hereinset forth, as it is obvious that various modifications may be madetherein without departing from the essential features of the inventionas defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described ourinvention, we claim:

1. An apparatus of the class described, comprising'an electricalconductor, a tempering bath, a horizontal oscillatory shaft in proximityto the tempering bath, means for holding the article to be treated infixed relation to the oscillatory shaft and in circuit with theconductor, and means whereby r0- tation of the shaft to immerse thearticle in the tempering bath breaks the electrical circuit.

2. An apparatus of the class described,

comprising an electrical conductor having suitablyspaced terminals, atempering bat-h, an oscillatory shaft or cylinder having radiallyextending standards provided with con tact members respectivelyengageable with said terminals, and holding means carried,

by said standards and arranged to support the article being treatedwhich completes the electrical circuit when said contact memhere are inengagement with said terminals, and which is plunged into said bath whensaid shaft or cylinder is rotated to break the connection between thecontacts and terminals.

3. An apparatus of the class described, comprising spaced electricalcontact terminals, a tempering bath, an oscillatory cylinder or shafthaving later-air projections carrying contact members respectivelyengageable with said terminals, holders adjustably supported by saidprojections and having spring clips for holding a dental regulatingarch, said clips being so formed and twisted as to hold said arch insuch angular relation to-the plane of the surface of the bath when theelectrical contacts are operatively engaged, that its plane will'assumea position substantially coincident with the plane of the surface of thebath when plunged therein by the rotation of said shaft or cylinder tobreak the circuit.

4. An apparatus of the class described, comprising spaccd'electricalcontact terminals, an oscillatory shaft or cylinder carryingelectrically conducting projections relatively insulated and havingcontact members respectively arranged to engage and disengage saidterminals by the movement of said shaft, holders adjustably mounted insaid projections and having spring clips depending therefrom whose freeend portions are directed obliquely outward and returned uponthemselves, for holding a dental regulating arch in circuit with saidterminals and in such angular relation with respect to the surface ofthe bath that when said cylinder or shaft isrotated to break saidcircuit, the plane of the arch .will substantially assume the plane ofthe surface of the bath when plunged into said bath.

5. An apparatus of the class described, comprising a casing, electricalcontact termiuals in said casing, an oscillatory mounting carryingrelatively insulated spaced supports having means for electricallyengaging said terminals, means adjustable in said supports for holding adental regulating arch in circuit with said terminals, and a closure torsaid casing having an eyesight aperture. therein through which theoperator may peer.

6. An apparatus of the class described. comprising a casing, electricalcontact terniinals in said casing. an oscillatory mounting carryingrelatively insulated spaced supports re pectively having means forelectrically engaging said terminals, means adjnstably mounted in saidsupports for holding a dental regulating arch in circuit with saidterminals. a bath into which said arch may be plunged by the movement ofsaid mounting to break said circuit, and a closure for said casinghaving an eyesight aperture therein through which the operator may peer.

T. An apparatus of the class described, comprising a casing having aremovable closure and provided with an eyesight aperture, an electricalconductor-,an oscillatory mounting carrying relatively insulated spacedsupports having means for electrically engaging said conductor, meansearried by said supports for holding a dental regulating arch in circuitwith said eonductor, a bath into which said arch may be plunged by themovement of said mounting to break the circuit, and means exterior tosaid closure for operating said oscillatory mounting.

Intestimony whereof, we, Enwaan ll. Ax- GLE and AL'nnnT H. Kn'rcnmr,have hereunto signed our names at Denver, Colorado, this second day ofMay. 1914.

EDWARD H. ANGLE. ALBERT H. KETCHAM. lVitnesses:

SAMUEL E. FowLnn, S. A. Soo'rr.

goples of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G."

